From the colonial exhibition to the Museum of Man. An alternative genealogy of French anthropologyThe 1931 Paris Colonial Exhibition, usually looked upon as an instance of
colonial picturesque, may in fact be seen as a missing link in the history of
French anthropology. Anthropology, both a symbol and an instrument of the new
Native policy promoted by the organisers, played a key role in the project of
displaying to the public the diversity of the peoples of the empires. The
Exhibition provided a venue for anthropological conferences and opportunities
for fieldwork, as it gave a prominent place to ethnographic documents, native
artefacts and performers. In a sense, it appears as a rehearsal for the Museum
of Man that was to be the heart of the discipline.
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